4 border deaths in Texas could be a preview of the summer

FILE – In this March 29, 2019, file photo, cars and trucks line up to enter the U.S. from Mexico at a border crossing in El Paso, Texas. Authorities in far South Texas say U.S. Border Patrol agents have discovered the bodies of four people, including three children, who appeared to have died from heat exposure after crossing the Rio Grande. Hidalgo County sheriff’s Sgt. Frank Medrano said the bodies of a woman in her early 20s, a toddler and two infants were found Sunday, June, 23, 2019, in or near Anzalduas Park, which borders the river in the city of Mission. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

(AP) – Two babies, a toddler and a woman were found dead near the U.S.-Mexican border, overcome by the sweltering heat in a glimpse of what could lie ahead this summer as record numbers of migrant families try to get into the United States.

Authorities believe the four may have been dead
for days before the bodies were discovered on Sunday in the Rio Grande
Valley. No details were released on the victims’ relationship.

It was the latest grim discovery of migrants who died while trying to cross the perilous desert and the swollen Rio Grande.

A
law enforcement official close to the investigation told The Associated
Press the four were overcome by the heat after fording the river. The
official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on
condition of anonymity.

Migrant families have been coming over the
border in unprecedented numbers in recent months, reaching a peak in
May, when 84,000 adults and children traveling together were
apprehended. Nearly 500,000 immigrants have been detained at the border
since the start of the year, resulting in dangerous overcrowding in U.S.
holding centers.

A total of 283 migrant deaths were recorded
along the 2,000-mile border last year. The death toll so far this year
was not immediately released.

Three children and an adult from
Honduras are believed to have died after their raft overturned on the
Rio Grande in April. They had considered seeking asylum but were daunted
by a long wait list to get into the U.S., according to a shelter official who met the family.

A
6-year-old immigrant from India was found dead in the triple-digit heat
in Arizona this month, and seven people believed to be migrants died in
June alone in irrigation canals that run alongside border barriers near
El Paso. The total last year for such deaths in those canals was 11.

And
the bodies of a father and nearly 2-year-old daughter from El Salvador
were recovered from the Rio Grande on Monday, the Mexican newspaper La
Jornada reported. The mother told the paper she watched her husband and
child disappear in the strong current.

Border Patrol spokesman
Ramiro Cordero said that in past years, agents would be posted near
canals and hear the cries of help from migrants. But they are doing
other duties this year with so many immigrants showing up, some in poor
health.

“Unfortunately, because of the large influx of illegal
aliens and agents having to be diverted to other duties, such as
transporting, hospital escorts … there are not a lot of agents readily
available to hear these cries,” he said in a statement.

The Trump
administration is also under siege from critics who believe it is
taking too hard a line toward humanitarian volunteers who help border
crossers by leaving jugs of water in the desert and providing medical
assistance.

The Justice Department prosecuted a volunteer with the
aid group No More Deaths on conspiracy charges for providing two
migrants with water, food and lodging last year. He faced up to 20 years
in prison, but the case ended in a mistrial earlier this month when the jury deadlocked.

The
immigrants who make it across the border and turn themselves in to
authorities are experiencing their own problems and safety risks in
government detention. Five children have died after being detained by
the government since late last year, and dozens of youngsters were found
last week in unsanitary conditions inside a Border Patrol station near
El Paso. The government had transferred the majority of the children out
of the facility by Monday.

Authorities say the weather is one factor in some of the recent deaths.

Higher-than-average
snowfall in the Rocky Mountains is sending more water into the Rio
Grande and adjacent canals, creating deceptively swift waters. Border
agents say they are rescuing immigrants from the river on an almost
daily basis.

Customs and Border Protection agents have responded
to 3,330 rescue emergencies since the start of the fiscal year Oct. 1.
Those numbers typically spike in the coming months as triple-digit heat
becomes the norm.

During the last budget year, Customs and Border Protection rescue teams responded to more than 4,300 emergencies.

The
irrigation canals near El Paso look calm on the surface and easy to
cross, but their V-shape creates a quick undertow, and it is difficult
to climb out of them.

“They don’t realize that once they get in
there, their feet can get swept away. There’s a lot of obstacles,
there’s debris in the canal, and there are headgates,” which can trap or
stop people, said Capt. Kris Menendez, head of the El Paso County Water
Rescue Team.

The team was training near a headgate on June 11
when one of the firefighters spotted a body in the water. By the time
they got in the water, there were two bodies — one a preschool-age girl,
and the other a 30-year-old man.

The names of the four who died
in the Rio Grande were not immediately released, and authorities were
working to determine their country of origin. The bodies were found in
or near a park that borders the river in the city of Mission, Hidalgo
County sheriff’s Sgt. Frank Medrano said.

The FBI is leading the investigation because the park is on federal land.

Medrano said the area is commonly used by migrants entering the country illegally.

“It’s a well-known route because it’s so close to the border,” he said.

___

Associated
Press Writer Colleen Long contributed to this report from Washington.
Warren contributed from Dallas, Attanasio from El Paso.

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